GREENVILLE, S.C. -Women's college basketball is a four quarter game, but it took only one forgettable frame to doom Anderson University on Sunday in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship game at Timmons Arena.

Wingate (21-8) turned a four-point deficit into a 16-point lead with a 27-7 second quarter and that made the biggest difference in the Bulldogs' 67-61 decision over top seed and regular season league champ Anderson (22-6).

"We just had a really bad second quarter," AU coach Jimmy Garrity said. "We had a tough time scoring and Wingate had a lot to do with that. We turned the ball over a little too much."

The Trojans shot just 26 percent in the first half and had trouble taking care of the ball in a game that saw Wingate top Anderson for the second time in eight days.

"Wingate's a great team," Garrity said. "They're not just the hottest team in our conference, they're one of the hottest teams in the country."

Ranked 25th nationally and No. 5 in the Southeast Region, the Trojans are still expected to get an at-large berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Selections will be announced at 10 p.m. today on NCAA.com.

Heather Jankowy led Anderson with 15 points, followed by Alexis Dillard (14), Jennifer Monroe (12), Madison Floyd (11), Tamia Eatmon (4), Bailey Sims (3) and Katie Davis (2).

Dillard and Monroe had double-doubles with 12 and 10 rebounds, respectively.

Kristina Rumplasch led the winners with 16 points, while Shelby Tricoli added 13.

AU won the rebounding battle 48-38 but shot just 28 percent for the game.

"It's hard to play a good team three times," Monroe said. "There's a reason they're always here and a reason we're always here. They're a tough team to play."

The Trojans' only realistic hope for a comeback rested with a monumental second half - and they almost came all the way back thanks to a tremendous fourth quarter.

However, their big run came too late.

The Bulldogs padded their lead in the third, winning the period 17-10 and taking a 59-36 lead into the final quarter.

Anderson clawed back in contention in the 11th hour, cutting the deficit to 65-61 with under a minute left.

But that was as close as AU got, and a 25-8 surge by Garrity's crew wasn't quite enough.

"We made a heck of a comeback," Garrity said. "It came down to a couple of possessions and we had some good looks. But give Wingate credit. They protected their lead."

Wingate got off to a hot start in the first quarter, taking an 11-5 lead in the early going. But AU kept up the defensive pressure and shots started to fall midway through the frame.

Floyd hit a pair of free throws at the :53 mark to give Anderson its first lead of the game (17-15), and Jankowy finished the quarter with 10 points while Floyd added seven to help the Trojans grab a 19-15 edge after 10 minutes.

In the second period, however, Wingate took complete control.

In a segment that saw the Trojans turn the ball over at an alarming rate and lose their shooting touch, the Bulldogs used an 11-0 run to put Anderson in a hole and finished the quarter by outscoring the Black and Gold by 20 points.

By halftime the tourney's No. 3 seed had tallied 23 points off turnovers to just four for AU and the Dogs had a 12-2 advantage in the paint.

With 20 minutes left Anderson was reeling with a 42-26 deficit.

But they never gave up.

"I'm so proud of this team," Garrity said. "They could've quit, but they never did. And our season isn't over. We have a lot to play for still."